Slider holder for the assemblage of slide fasteners

ABSTRACT

An upright support structure having a slider rest on its top is slidably mounted in a hollow guide structure for up-and-down motion therethrough. A spring-actuated locking lever turnably supported inside the support structure includes a detent adapted to engage the opening in the pull tab of a slider to be placed upside down on the slider rest, and a spring-actuated stop member is also turnably supported inside the support structure to retain the locking lever in its retracted position as required. During descent of the support structure to its most depressed position withtin the guide structure, the locking lever is turned to the retracted position by a first striker disposed internally of the guide structure and is restrained there by the stop member, thereby permitting the slider to be deposited on the slider rest during succeeding ascent of the support structure back to its most elevated position. The stop member is then actuated by a second striker to permit the detent of the locking lever to engage the opening in the slider pull tab, so that the slider is locked in position on the slider rest by the time the support structure returns to its mosts elevated position for the assemblage of a fastener chain through the slider. The slider holder is further provided with means for double-locking the slider on the slider rest and with manual release associated therewith.

Sept. 2, 1975 ABSTRACT SLIDER HOLDER FOR THE ASSEMBLAGE OF SLIDE FASTENERS An upright support structure having a slider rest on its 75 Inventors; Koichi Kawakami, Kumbe; Tatsuo top is slidably mounted in a hollow guide structure for up-and-down motion therethrough. A spring-actuated locking lever turnably supported inside the support Osaki, Uozu, both of Japan [73] Assignee: Yoshida Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha,

Tokyo, Japan structure includes a detent adapted to engage the opening in the pull tab of a slider to beplaced upside down on the slider rest, and a spring 4 hm 7 m 9 1 .m t

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Apr. 19, 1973 48-44494 on the slider rest during succeeding ascent of the support structure back to its most elevated position. The stop member is then actuated by a second striker to permit the detent of the locking lever to engage the O M5 7 EDWO 922 2 ZBLT S L055 S5 7 7 5 0 I 7 0D9 2122 W2. 2 m mmm "We "2S a d s u O H M wow [56] References Cited opening in the slider pull tab, so that the slider is UNITED STATES PATENTS locked in position on the slider rest by the time the support structure returns to its mosts elevated position 3,789,487 2/1974 Kawakami.................... 29/207.5 SL 3,792,521

for the assemblage of a fastener chain through the slider. The slider holder is further provided with 2/1974 Kawakami.................... 29/207.5 SL

means for double-locking the slider on the slider rest Primary Exammer V1ctr Dlpalma and with manual release associated therewith.

Attorney, Agent, or F irmBucknam and Archer 6 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures PATENTEU SEP 2 I975 SHEET 1 0F 4 PATENTED SEP 2 97 SHEET 2 BF 4 FIG.3

PATENTED SEP 2 I 75 SHEET 3 BF 4 SLIDER HOLDER FOR THE ASSEMBLAGE OF SLIDE FASTENERS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a device for holding a slider during assemblage therethrough of a slide fastener chain or a pair of fastener stringers. More particularly, the invention is directed to what may be termed a consecutive slider holder whereby successive sliders can be automatically carried to, and securely locked in, a predetermined assembly position to expedite the assemblage of the fastener chain therethrough.

In the art of manufacturing slide fasteners, the fastener elements are attached usually to the beaded edge of a stringer tape, and a pair of such fastener stringers either before or after they are attached to parts of a desired article are assembled by manipulating through the usual slider. It will be apparent that this final process of slide fastener assemblage should be automated as far as feasible and that by use of simple and inexpensive apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a slider holder wherein the successive sliders are deposited on a slider rest, carried to a predetermined assembly position over the working table, and securely locked in position, through a fully automatic procedure.

Another object of the invention is to provide a slider holder wherein each slider which has been carried to the assembly position is double-locked against any possibility of displacement during assemblage of a fastener chain therethrough.

A further object of the invention is to provide a slider holder wherein the slider can be manually released from its doublelocked condition independently of any other operating parts of the holder.

A further object of this invention is to provide a slider holder of highly compact and inexpensive construction which is capable of functioning efficiently over prolonged periods of use.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, when taken together with the accompanying drawings which illustrate, by way of example only, a preferred embodiment of the invention and in which like reference characters denote corresponding parts of the several views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a slider holder constructed in accordance with the novel concepts of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view showing the internal construction of a support structure in the slider holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view also showing the internal construction of the support structure;

FIGS. 4 to 7 inclusive are fragmentary vertical sectional views explanatory of the sequential steps of operation of the slider holder; and

FIG. 8 is also a fragmentary vertical sectional view explanatory of the way a slider is released from its double-locked condition following the assemblage of a fastener chain therethrough.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT With particular reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, the exemplified slider holder according to the invention includes an upright support structure 10 having a slider rest 11 on its top and slidably mounted in a hollow guide structure 12 for up-and-down motion therethrough. The guide structure 12 may be fixedly mounted within a working table 13 in such a manner that only its upper end portion projects upwardly therefrom. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the support structure 10 may have a link 14 coupled thereto via a pin or shaft 15 at or adjacent its bottom end, and the desired up-and-down motion of the support structure may be caused via a cam or like mechanism (not shown) associated with the link 14, in a controlled manner necessary for proper operation of this slider holder as later described.

The slider rest 11 includes first and second channels 16 and 17 extending downwardly from the top of the support structure 10 and disposed at right angles with each other. As will be understood from FIG. 4, the first channel 16 is adapted to receive a lug 18 arranged longitudinally on the channeled body of a slider 19, whereas the second channel 17 is adapted to receive a pull tab 20 of the slider which is pivotally attached to its lug 18. It will thus be apparent that the slider 19 is to be mounted in upside-down disposition on the slider rest 11 to permit a fastener chain 21 to be manipulated through its channeled body. As seen in FIG. 3, the first channel 16 extends throughout the length of the support structure 10 to accommodate various operating parts of the slider holder hereinafter set forth.

In order to lock the slider 19 in position on the slider rest 11, a locking lever 22 is pivotally supported at 23 within the downward extension of the first channel 16, the locking lever having a detent 24 projecting laterally from its top. A helical compression spring is provided at 25 to cause the detent 24 of the locking lever 22 to tend to project into the usual opening in the pull tab 20 of the slider 19 supported on the slider rest 11. The locking lever 22 further includes a pair of shoulders 26 formed intermediate between both ends thereof; that is, between detent 24 and pivotal point 23 and a laterally projecting abutment 27 formed adjacent its bottom end.

A stop 28 is pivotally supported at 29 in opposed relationship to the locking lever 22. The stop 28 consists of a pair of angularly spaced arms 30 and 31 and is pivotally supported at the apex of the two arms. The arm 30 has its free end bifurcated to slidably receive the upper and portion of the locking lever 22, and a pair of recesses 32 are formed in the free end of the arm to engage the respective shoulders 26 of the locking lever 22. The other arm 31 functions as an abutment for turning the stop 28 between its operative or first position and its inoperative or second position. A helical extension spring is provided at 33 for biasing the stop 28 toward its operative or fourth position in which its recesses 32 are engaged by the respective shoulders 26 of the locking lever 22.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, a stationary striker 34 protrudes into the hollow guide structure 12 through an aperture 35. Upon descent of the support structure 10 into the guide structure 12, the stationary striker 34 will strike the abutment 27 of the locking lever 22 to cause the same to turn to its inoperative or second position in which the detent 24 is held retracted away from the second channel 17 of the slider rest 11. Another striker 36 is movable into and out of the hollow space within the guide structure 12 through an aperture 37. This movable striker 36 is to be actuated by a suitable drive mechanism (not shown) in timed relationship to the up-and-down motion of the support structure through the guide structure 12, in such a manner that the movable striker will strike the arm or abutment 31 of the stop 28 thereby causing the same to turn to its inoperative or third position.

Referring back to FIG. 1 in particular, the slider holder should be further provided with retaining means for securely holding the locking lever 22 in its operative position in which the detent 24 projects into the opening in the pull tab of the slider 19 supported on the slider rest 11. The retaining means includes a pair of spaced-apart brackets 38 fixedly supported on the upper end portion of the guide structure 12 projecting upwardly of the table 13. A shaft 39 revolvably extends transversely of the brackets 38, and a stay 40 is fixedly mounted on the shaft 39 between the brackets 38 so as to be turned into and out of abutment against the back of the locking lever 22. A link 41 is securely coupled at one of its ends to the shaft 39 and extends radially therefrom to impart the desired angular motion to the stay 40. A helical tension spring 42 extends between the other end of the link 41 and a stationary member (not shown), so that the stay 40 is biased into abutment against the back of the locking lever 22.

A manually operable release lever 43 is pivotally supported by a pin or shaft 44 in substantially crosswise arrangement with respect to the link 41. A hook 45 is also mounted on the shaft 44 for simultaneous motion with the release lever 43, in such a way that the hook 45 slidably abuts against one of the lateral edges of the link 41. Hence, upon manual depression of the release lever 43, the hook 45 will cause the link 41 to turn against the force of the spring 42, with the result that the stay 40 is turned out of abutment against the locking lever 22.

Proceeding to the description of operation of the slider holder constructed as hereinbefore described, let it be assumed that the fastener chain 21 has just been manipulated through the channeled body of the slider 19 on the slider rest 11 in the most elevated position of the support structure 10, as illustrated in FIG. 4, and that the support structure is succeedingly caused to descend through the guide structure 12 to its most depressed position shown in FIG. 5. Immediately before the support structure 10 reaches its most depressed position, the stationary striker 34 engages the abutment 27 of the locking lever 22 thereby causing the same to turn clockwise as viewed in FIG. 5, with the result that the detent 24 is retracted away from the second channel 17 of the slider rest 11. The detent 24 can be held in its retracted or second position because then the stop 28 is also turned clockwise by the spring 33 to engage the shoulders 26 of the locking lever 22 in its recesses 32. The slider rest 11 is now ready to receive the next slider thereon.

As the support structure 10 succeedingly starts as cending through the guide structure 12, the next slider 19 is already supplied in upside-down disposition to a prescribed position within the guide structure by a suitable feed mechanism (not shown) known to those skilled in the art. Upon ascent of the support structure 10 to the position shown in FIG. 6, the slider 19 has its lug 18 received in the first channel 16 and its pull tab 20 in the second channel 17, so that the slider is now properly supported on the slider rest 11.

Immediately after the slider 19 hs been has on the slider rest 11, the movable striker 36 is actuated to protrude into the interior of the guide structure 12 through the aperture 37 as illustrated in FIG. 7. The movable striker gives a thrust to the arm or abutment 31 of the stop 28 thereby causing the same to turn counterclockwise against the force of the spring 33. The shoulders 26 of the locking lever 22 are now disengaged from the recesses 32 of the stop 28, so that the detent 24 on the top of the locking lever is urged by the spring 25 to project into the opening in the pull tab 20 of the slider 19. The slider is thus locked in position on the slider rest 11.

The support structure 10 together with the slider 19 supported on its top further continues ascending to its fully elevated position shown previously in FIG. 4, in which the support structure partly projects upwardly of the guide structure 12. It will be noted that with the support structure 10 thus brought to its most elevated position, the stay 40 of the aforesaid retaining means shown in FIG. 1 is urged by the spring 42 into abutment against the back of the locking lever 22. The slider 19 is thus double-locked on the slider rest 11. It is particularly noteworthy that the detent 24 on the top of the locking lever 22 is urged into the opening in the slider pull tab 20 not only by the compression spring 25 acting on the locking lever'but by the tension spring 42 acting on the link 41, the force of the latter spring being significantly intensified because it acts on the link 41 at a point considerably spaced from its point of connection to the shaft 39. In this manner the slider 19 can be securely retained on the slider rest against any possible displacement or detachment while the fastener chain 21 is being manipulated through the guide channels of the slider body as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 4.

Upon completion of the assemblage of the fastener chain through the slider, the release lever 43 may be manually depressed against the force of the spring 42, as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 8, thereby causing the stay 40 to turn out of abutment against the locking lever 22. With the stay 40 thus held in its retracted position, the assembled slider 19 and fastener chain 21 can be withdrawn from over the support structure 10 simply by being pulled upwardly away from the slider rest 11, because then the detent 24 will be forced to retract out of the opening in the slider pull tab 40 against the resistance offered by the spring 25. The above described procedure may thereafter be repeated for continuous assemblage of slide fasteners.

It should be noted that upon manual depression of the release lever 43, the slider locking action of the retaining means comprising the stay 40 and so forth can be canceled independently of any other operating parts of the slider holder, thereby permitting the withdrawal of the slider 19 which has been assembled with the fastener chain 21. By virtue of this feature of the invention, it is possible, for example, that the slider be mounted on the slider rest 11 in the opposite direction to that shown in the drawings, to permit the fastener chain to be threaded through the guide channels of the slider in the direction toward the operator, contrary to the usual practice of pulling the fastener chain through the slider away from the operator. In this manner the operator can immediately proceed to the attachment of a bottom stop to the assembled fastener chain upon withdrawal thereof from over the support structure 10,

while the support structure may be left in its most elevated position.

While the slider holder according to the invention has been shown and described hereinbefore in terms of a specific embodiment thereof, it is to be clearly understood that all matter described herein or shown in the accompanying drawings is by way of example only and is not intended to impos limitations upon the invention. It is therefore appropriate that the invention be construed broadly and in a manner consistent with the fair meaning or proper scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A device for holding sliders during assemblage of a fastener chain therethrough, wherein the slider includes a pull tab having an opening therein, said device comprising in combination:

a hollow guide structure;

an upright support structure slidably mounted in said guide structure for up-and-down motion there through, in such a manner that said support structure partly projects upwardly of said guide structure when in its most elevated position;

a slider rest formed on the top of said support structure to support the slider in upside-down disposition thereon, said slider rest including at least one channel extending downwardly from the top of said support structure to receive the pull tab of the slider;

a locking lever pivotally supported by said support structure so as to be turnable between a first and a second position; detent formed on said locking lever to engage the opening in the pull tab of the slider on said slider rest when said locking lever is in said first position, said detent retracting out of the opening in the pull tab when said locking lever is turned to said second position; first resilient means for biasing said locking lever toward said first position;

a stop pivotally supported by said support structure so as to be turnable between a third and a fourth position, said stop being held in said third position while said locking lever is held in said first position;

second resilient means for biasing said stop toward said fourth position, so that when said locking lever is turned to said second position, said stop is concurrently turned to said fourth position to restrain said locking lever in said second position;

a first striker disposed in a prescribed position within said guide structure to turn said locking lever to said second position against the resistance offered by said first resilient means during descent of said support structure to its most depressed position within said guide structure, so that the slider can then be deposited properly on said slider rest; and

a second striker disposed in another prescribed position within said guide structure to turn said stop to said third position against the resistance offered by said second resilient means during ascent of said support structure from its most depressed position back to its most elevated position, so that the slider which has been deposited on said slider rest is locked in position thereon by said detent of said locking lever by the time said support structure reaches its most elevated position.

2. The slider holder as recited in claim 1, wherein said second striker is movable into and out of the interior of said guide structure in timed relationship to the up-and-down motion of said support structure therethrough.

3. The slider holder as recited in claim 1, further comprising retaining means for retaining said locking lever in said first position when said support structure is held in its most elevated position, and release means for canceling the retaining action of said retaining means.

4. The slider holder as recited in claim 3, wherein said retaining means comprises a shaft revolvably supported on said guide structure, a stay fixedly mounted on said shaft so as to be turnable into and out of abutment against the back of said locking lever, a link also fixedly mounted on said shaft and extending radially therefrom, and third resilient means for biasing said link in such a direction that said stay is yieldably urged into abutment against the back of said locking lever.

5. The slider holder as recited in claim 4, wherein said third resilient means is a tension spring connected to a free end portion of said link.

6. The slider holder as recited in claim 4, wherein said release means includes a release lever which is operable manually to turn said link against the resistance offered by said third resilient means, thereby causing said stay to turn out of abutment against the back of said locking lever. 

1. A device for holding sliders during assemblage of a fastener chain therethrough, wherein the slider includes a pull tab having an opening therein, said device comprising in combination: a hollow guide structure; an upright support structure slidably mounted in said guide structure for up-and-down motion therethrough, in such a manner that said support structure partly projects upwardly of said guide structure when in its most elevated position; a slider rest formed on the top of said support structure to support the slider in upside-down disposition thereon, said slider rest including at least one channel extending downwardly from the top of said support structure to receive the pull tab of the slider; a locking lever pivotally supported by said support structure so as to be turnable between a first and a second position; a detent formed on said locking lever to engage the opening in the pull tab of the slider on said slider rest when said locking lever is in said first position, said detent retracting out of the opening in the pull tab when said locking lever is turned to said second position; first resilient means for biasing said locking lever toward said first position; a stop pivotally supported by said support structure so as to be turnable between a third and a fourth position, said stop being held in said third position while said locking lever is held in said first position; second resilient means for biasing said stop toward said fourth position, so that when said locking lever is turned to said second position, said stop is concurrently turned to said fourth position to restrain said locking lever in said second position; a first striker disposed in a prescribed position within said guide structure to turn said locking lever to said second position against the resistance offered by said first resilient means during descent of said support structure to its most depressed position within said guide structure, so that the slider can then be deposited properly on said slider rest; and a second striker disposed in another prescribed position within said guide structure to turn said stop to said third position against the resistance offered by said second resilient means during ascent of said support structure from its most depressed position back to its most elevated position, so that the slider which has been deposited on said slider rest is locked in position thereon by said detent of said locking lever by the time said support structure reaches its most elevated position.
 2. The slider holder as recited in claim 1, wherein said second striker is movable into and out of the interior of said guide structure in timed relationship to the up-and-down motion of said support structure therethrough.
 3. The slider holder as recited in claim 1, further comprising retaining means for retaining said locking lever in said first position when said support structure is held in its most elevated position, and release means for canceling the retaining action of said retaining means.
 4. The slider holder as recited in claim 3, wherein said retaining means comprises a shaft revolvably supported on said guide structure, a stay fixedly mounted on said shaft so as to be turnable into and out of abutment against the back of said locking lever, a link also fixedly mounted on said shaft and extending radially therefrom, and third resilient means for biasing said link in such a direction that said stay is yieldably urged into abutment against the back of said locking lever.
 5. The slider holder as recited in claim 4, wherein said third resilient means is a tension spring connected to a free end portion of said link.
 6. The slider holder as recited in claim 4, wherein said release meAns includes a release lever which is operable manually to turn said link against the resistance offered by said third resilient means, thereby causing said stay to turn out of abutment against the back of said locking lever. 